At Xbox we’ve been hard at work and are excited to share more of our plans for one of the gaming industry’s biggest annual events. That’s right: E3 is just under two months away and we’ve got a great show lined up for gaming fans around the world. From our briefing to our fan events, the Xbox Experience to the Xbox Official Gear Shop, this will be our biggest E3 presence ever and we can’t wait to share more about what we’ve got up our sleeves for the future. Whether you play your games on Xbox One or on a PC, are fans of RPGs, first-person shooters and everything in between, or just like watching others play games, there will be something for everyone at E3.

We start planning for E3 just days after the big show every year and we couldn’t be more excited for what we have in store for you this June. We’ll be kicking things off with our annual Xbox E3 2019 Briefing, which you can watch live beginning on Sunday, June 9 at 1 p.m. PDT. During the briefing, you’ll have a chance to check out everything from trailers for unannounced titles coming in 2019 and beyond to in-depth looks at previously announced games. You can watch the Xbox E3 2019 Briefing live beginning at 1 p.m. PDT on Sunday, June 9 on the official Xbox Mixer Channel or on the Mixer app for Xbox One and Windows 10.

Once again, we will plan to have a MixPot (the Mixer feature that drops free content for logged-in viewers on certain streams) for our briefing, so be sure to log in to Mixer to get your free MixPot content! The Xbox E3 2019 Briefing will be offered in six languages on Mixer: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish (LATAM), Portuguese (LATAM), and includes support for English Closed Captions. To select an alternate language, click the “cog” button within Mixer to view the available list. We’re excited for more fans all around the world to join in on the Xbox E3 2019 Briefing festivities.

You’ll also be able to catch a live stream of the briefing on other streaming services, which we’ll be announcing soon, as well as on the big screen at select Microsoft Stores.

We’re also happy to share that Inside Xbox, our showcase sharing everything great in the world of Xbox, will be airing a special episode during E3. Inside Xbox: Live @ E3 will air Monday, June 10 at 3 p.m. PDT and will feature a livestream full of exclusive announcements, game demos, interviews, and more.

For those fans attending E3, we’ll have plenty of opportunities to check out what we’ve got going on during the show. The Microsoft Theater and the Xbox Plaza at LA Live will be our home for all of our activities throughout the week. We’re happy to share that not only will the Xbox Experience will be returning this year to the Microsoft Theater, we’ll have it open from Tuesday through Thursday, just like the E3 Expo itself. The Xbox Experience gets bigger this year with over 100 gameplay stations on the main stage and a massive, dedicated Xbox merchandise shop.

This year, the Mixer team is bringing a ton of streaming activities to LA Live with the launch of the Mixer Dome, a dedicated space in the Xbox Plaza where gamers can play, stream, and interact with games like never before. The Mixer Dome will be bringing plenty of excitement to E3, featuring a variety of unique experiences you won’t want to miss, including our popular HypeZone LIVE, Mixer merchandise, a live DJ, and more you’ll have to see to believe.

In addition, every visitor will walk away with some awesome swag, and even a chance at winning a brand-new game console! We’ll also have the Mixer @ E3 LIVE show happening live from both the Microsoft Theater and the Mixer Dome at LA Live throughout the whole week of E3. We’ll be sharing more details on the Mixer @ E3 LIVE show and the rest of our E3 content as we get closer to the week of E3, so keep an eye out for our full schedule.

Finally, if you’re in LA during E3 week, we’ve got something even bigger for you: Xbox FanFest: E3 2019! As we announced during March’s episode of Inside Xbox, FanFest will indeed be returning this year. We’ll be sharing tons of details on Xbox FanFest: E3 2019 later today during Inside Xbox, so be sure to tune in at 2 p.m. PDT to find out more!

Head on over to the Xbox E3 Online Experience for more information, as well as full rules and regulations, on Xbox FanFest: E3 2019.

Stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks, as these are just a few of the activities Xbox has planned for E3 2019!

*UPDATE:Available today for free on Windows 10 devices, and rolling out to iOS and Android starting this year, Forza Street was designed for racing on the go with streamlined controls that focus on timing of gas, brake, and boost as the keys to victory.

Today we’re extremely excited to share two big announcements that deliver on what are easily the most frequently requested asks from our community over the last few years: First, Halo: Reach is being added to Halo: The Master Chief Collection (MCC) and second, the entire collection is coming to PC via the Microsoft Store and Steam! This is an incredibly exciting opportunity for us to bring the Halo Universe and Master Chief’s story to a new audience and to offer PC gamers a chance to step into the franchise on the PC platform of their choice.

For the team at 343 Industries, the most important and critical element of this project is ensuring that Halo: The Master Chief Collection delivers a true “first class” experience on PC. We’re embarking on a journey with our community to build a PC experience that delivers on PC gamer expectations. The team is passionately committed to ensuring that all of the features, bells, and whistles expected in a modern PC title are included with MCC.

The Master Chief’s arrival on PC will happen in stages with each title releasing one by one over time -– giving the development teams the ability to ensure each one is right, while giving players a chance to jump in right away, rather than having to wait for the entire suite of games to be completed. Our current plan is for this journey to begin with the launch of Halo: Reach – the fictional beginnings of Master Chief’s saga – with the rest of the titles following in chronological order thereafter. Halo: Reach, Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST (Campaign), and Halo 4 will each be available for individual purchase within MCC as they become available. And each game will evolve and grow over time with community input.

Along with “bring Halo: The Master Chief Collection to PC!”, the next loudest refrain from Halo fans has been to “add Halo: Reach to Halo: The Master Chief Collection!” and we’re excited to make good on both requests later this year. Halo: Reach in Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Xbox One looks better than ever in stunning 4K/HDR on compatible hardware and plays better than ever at a silky smooth 60FPS.

On Xbox One specifically, Halo: Reach’s multiplayer content (which includes Forge and the Theater) will be automatically included for everyone who owns Halo: The Master Chief Collection while Halo: Reach’s Campaign and Firefight experiences will be offered together as a premium digital add-on. Xbox Game Pass subscribers will have access to the entirety of Halo: Reach within MCC as part of their subscription. Halo: Reach will look and play just as great when it lands on the Microsoft Store and Steam with Campaign, Multiplayer, and Firefight available for purchase as the first step in this PC journey.

We know many of you will have questions, so stay tuned to Halo Waypoint – we’ll have plenty more to say, share, and show on the road to release. The team at 343 Industries, along with our partners at Splash Damage and Ruffian, are already hard at work and we can’t wait to bring the community along on this journey.

On behalf of the entire 343 Industries team, thank you to everyone who’s continued to play and support Halo and Halo: The Master Chief Collection and for not giving up on the dream of one day enjoying these great experiences on a PC.

This Fall, Windows has another major update to bring even more great features to your Windows 10 PC. Learn more here about the broader set of updates and features that arrived with the October Windows Update. And if you like gaming on your Windows 10 PC, we’ve got some specific updates that you’ll want to pay attention to!

Here are the latest improvements to Windows 10 for PC gamers in the recent October Windows Update:

Game bar Improvements

*New look: Enjoy a cleaner new look and layout.

*New audio controls: With the new audio control panel, get more control out of individual audio channels without ever having to leave your game.

*Game bar is now an app: Launching Game bar is now easier than ever, whether through the desktop, apps, the Start menu, or task bar.

Game Mode Improvements

*Fewer gaming interruptions: Based on feedback from gamers, we’ve simplified the way Game Mode works. Now auto-enabled for all games with a master On/Off toggle in Windows Settings, Game Mode suppresses Windows Update driver installs and blocks Windows Update interruptions such as restart notifications while you’re gaming. You may also see improved game performance with less FPS variability depending on the specific game and system.

Got a great idea for a Windows gaming feature? Let us know on the Xbox Ideas site!

Last Fall, the Microsoft Store enabled gifting of select Xbox One digital games, Xbox One downloadable game content (durables only), and Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass subscriptions. This feature has been a huge hit with our fans and has made buying presents for friends and family even easier, especially around the holidays.

Today, we’re excited to announce that we have expanded digital gifting to include PC games and PC downloadable game content (e.g. map packs, skins). Further, all Xbox One games are now eligible for digital gifting.

Here’s how to start sending digital gifts in the Microsoft Store:

*Head over to the Microsoft Store on Windows 10, on the Xbox One family of devices, or online, navigate to the product that you would like to purchase, select Buy as Gift, and enter the email address of the gift recipient. On Xbox One, you can choose a Gamertag from your list of Xbox Live friends.

*The gift recipient will receive a code for their product along with instructions on how to redeem the code. On Xbox One, gift recipients will receive a system message with a clickable redemption button.

A few things in keep in mind as you’re gifting:

*Gift purchasers can only buy two discounted products – and a total of 10 discounted products – every 14 days. There are no limits for gift purchases made at full price.

*Gifting of Xbox 360 and Xbox original games, pre-orders, free products, and consumable downloadable game content such as virtual currency is not allowed.

*Gift recipients can only redeem gift tokens in the country or region where they were purchased.

Many PC games are available for gifting today, May 10, and all games should be available for gifting by Friday, May 11. We are hard at work on improving digital gifting, adding new capabilities as well as support for new content types. We look forward to bringing you updates on the gifting of paid PC and Xbox apps soon.

Over the years, digital gifting has been one of the top asks from our fans. Please continue to give us feedback on features you would like to see, either using the Windows Feedback Hub app in Windows 10 or using our User Voice page. Thanks!

Last month, gamers worldwide got to experience fantastical pirate adventures firsthand, as Rare welcomed the community into the Sea of Thieves Closed Beta. As we approach the global launch of one of the most anticipated Xbox One exclusives for 2018, we’re pleased to announce the Xbox One S Sea of Thieves Bundle, offering prospective pirates the best value in games and entertainment alongside Rare’s highly anticipated shared-world adventure. Games play best on Xbox One, making it the perfect place to jump into Rare’s unique multiplayer adventure.

The Xbox One S Sea of Thieves Bundle will be available starting March 20, 2018 for $299.99 USD at a Microsoft Store near you and online, as well as participating retailers worldwide and is available now for pre-order. The bundle includes:

*An Xbox One S with a 1TB hard drive, Xbox Wireless Controller, a built-in 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player, support for 4K video streaming, High Dynamic Range and premium audio with Dolby Atmos. With over 1,300 great games including over 200 console exclusives – from the biggest blockbusters and most popular franchises to 400 titles across three generations of Xbox classics – there’s never been a better time to game on Xbox One.

*A full-game download of Sea of Thieves, allowing you to dive into the game’s shared-world on release day exclusively on Xbox One. Form a crew and take to the open ocean on voyages to discover buried treasure, solve puzzling riddles, secure precious cargo and combat a wide array of challenges. In a world where every sail signals a ship crewed by real players with unique goals and motivations, you never know what lies over the horizon.

*A 1-month Xbox Live Gold subscription, so you can experience the thrill of the high seas with the greatest community of gamers on Xbox Live, the fastest, most reliable gaming network.

*A 1-month Xbox Game Pass trial so you can discover over 100 Xbox One games with unlimited across three generations of consoles. Xbox Game Pass members will also receive access to new games from Microsoft Studios like State of Decay 2 and Crackdown 3 on the same date as their global launch.

Already have an Xbox One? Jump into the immersive multiplayer world of “Sea of Thieves” on March 20 with Xbox Game Pass for $9.99 a month, or preorder for $59.99. With Xbox Game Pass, you can enjoy unlimited access to over one hundred great Xbox One and Xbox 360 titles, including fan-favorites like Halo 5: Guardians, Gears of War 4, and Bioshock. Starting with Sea of Thieves, all future Microsoft Studios games will launch day and date on Xbox Game Pass, providing an additional option to set sail on day one.

Adam Isgreen, Creative Director at Microsoft, shares details about the launch of Age Of Empires: Definitive Edition on Windows 10.

Welcome back to history! Today is an exciting day for us at Microsoft, as we celebrate the legacy of Age of Empires with today’s release of Age of Empires: Definitive Edition worldwide on Windows 10 PCs.

We created Age of Empires: Definitive Edition as a homage to all Real Time Strategy (RTS) fans and to PC gamers everywhere. The Definitive Edition brings back the original Age of Empires and its Rise of Rome expansion with 16 civilizations to explore and 10 campaigns to conquer. Fully remastered with beautifully enhanced graphics that support up to 4K resolution, an impressive orchestral soundtrack, brand-new narrative, major gameplay improvements, Xbox Live support for multiplayer and Achievements, the Definitive Edition brings back the original feeling of Age of Empires, but better than ever.

We’re excited to start playing the game with you, and can’t wait to show you what’s next for the award-winning RTS franchise as we work on Definitive Editions of Age of Empires II and Age of Empires III.

As we welcome new and returning players to the Age of Empires franchise, we invite you celebrate launch by joining fellow Age of Empires fans at select Microsoft Store locations for the Age of Empires Tournament to conquer other civilizations and advance your Empire to the next age. Starting March 1, join a bracket style 1-v-1 tournament at 5 p.m. local time, to win prizes and a chance to receive Age of Empires swag. Tournaments are free to join, and players can sign up at smash.gg.

Check out the Age of Empires tournaments at the following Microsoft Store locations:

We’d like to thank everyone who has already experienced the game through our Closed Beta program. We’ve been so appreciative of all the insightful feedback we received, feedback which helped us develop the Definitive Edition as it is being released today.

On behalf of Microsoft Studios, Forgotten Empires and the rest of the Age of Empires team, thank you to the fans for supporting Age throughout the years. Ready to return to history with Age of Empires: Definitive Edition? Visit a Microsoft Store near you or Microsoft.com online to play or participate in the tournament action. Hope to see you soon!

In Canada, starting today, February 15, through February 23, save $60 CAD on 1TB Xbox One S bundles

In the U.S., starting February 18 through March 3, save $50 USD on Xbox One S bundles

Also, back by popular demand, we’re bringing back the offer where every Xbox One X purchase will come with a digital copy of the Xbox console launch exclusive PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. The promotion will be available in most Xbox One markets for a limited time – starting February 18 through March 4. Start and end dates will vary by market – in the U.S., the promotion runs from February 18 through February 24 – so you’ll want to check with your local retailer for more information including, Microsoft Store near you or online. Here’s a quick overview of where the promotion will be available:

Available in Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States and select Latin American countries starting February 18

Available in Australia, India, Korea, New Zealand, Singapore and select European, Middle Eastern and African countries starting February 20

The Xbox One gaming experience features a robust library of titles with more than 1,300 games and 220 exclusives available today, including Backward Compatible titles that make Xbox One the only console system to play the best games of the past, present and future. It’s also the only console where you can play the hottest game on the planet, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, now with more than 4 million players across the Xbox One family of devices.

In addition to having a comprehensive games library at one’s fingertips, Xbox One X and Xbox One S owners have access to a full suite of exclusive services like Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Play Anywhere and Xbox Live – the fastest, most reliable gaming network. Fans can also enjoy the ultimate 4K entertainment experience with a built-in 4K UHD Blu-ray player and premium audio with Dolby Atmos support.

Whether you’re gaming on Xbox One X or Xbox One S, there’s never been a better time to join your friends on Xbox.